Michael:
I would like to read her article. I am not sure what hanging
upside-down would accomplish for most birds other than to reach food, etc.
There is a possibility that some species hang upside-down while performing
distraction displays, but I doubt if very many species do it for this
purpose although I have no idea ... distraction displays will be a topic
for an upcoming article in the IB Bulletin.
Given that thornbills are small birds and build dome nests above the
ground I would guess that climbing snakes are the principle, or at least
commonan, predators. If so, any efforts by birds to distract such a
predator would be focused near the nest. Since distraction displays are
intented/designed to catch the attention of the predator the performer is
likley to do all sorts of gymnastics including hanging upside-down. I
would be interested in learning where, when and what else the birds do
when they hang upside-down. Do they position themselves in front of the
preedator? Do they mould their bodies to resemble a more favorite prey of
the predator (not unlike the rodent-run of fairy-wrens)? I would guess
that thornbills use different tactics to distract different types of
predators including mobbing etc.
What do you think? Thanks for the lead to Slater's article.
Cheers, Jim
On Mon, 6 Oct 1997, michael wrote:
> Barbara Salter wrote a short article ("An inverted pleasure") about
> birds hanging upside-down in the Bird Observer (no. 323 October 1958). I
> haven't got a copy but at least 5 species (including spinebill and
> magpie) were mentioned and, from memory, she could offer no explanation.
>
> I'd be interested in your reactions to it: her pieces were usually full
> of careful and delightful observations.
>
> Michael Norris
>
>
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